Just like I’ve done for the past two (three?) tournaments, send in your predictions of the men’s semifinals, including the winner and set numbers. For example, Federer in 5, Djokovic in 4. I don’t need the exact scoreline predicted. You can tweet them to me at @MindTheRacket or you can leave a comment here on the blog and I’ll add it in. Winners will be announced with a special shoutout, and it’s always interesting to see how the picks fall when lots of people get involved (which you all have in the past).

Here’s what I have so far, and I’ll continue to add predictions all the way up to the first men’s semifinal tonight. Retweet, tell your friends, and good luck!

Federer in 3, Djokovic in 3:
Federer in 3, Djokovic in 4: @ATP_Mars
Federer in 3, Djokovic in 5:
Federer in 4, Djokovic in 3: @MindTheRacket, @ParkUpdates, @RagingBitch, @bobbychin
Federer in 4, Djokovic in 4: @AnaTennisGirl, @fogmount, @TennisOnTennis, @ZeZeAM, @ITakeTheeTennis, @Castala, @sabs215
Federer in 4, Djokovic in 5: @astraldrops
Federer in 5, Djokovic in 3:
Federer in 5, Djokovic in 4: @hjennap
Federer in 5, Djokovic in 5:
Federer in 3, Murray in 3:
Federer in 3, Murray in 4:
Federer in 3, Murray in 5:
Federer in 4, Murray in 3:
Federer in 4, Murray in 4: @zbrain, @Lils4reals
Federer in 4, Murray in 5:
Federer in 5, Murray in 3:
Federer in 5, Murray in 4:
Federer in 5, Murray in 5:

Nadal in 3, Djokovic in 3:
Nadal in 3, Djokovic in 4:
Nadal in 3, Djokovic in 5:
Nadal in 4, Djokovic in 3: @rosso_neri, @vamosdutchgirl, @kait_oc, @RacquetRequired
Nadal in 4, Djokovic in 4: @jmtomato, @ShawnBesabella
Nadal in 4, Djokovic in 5:
Nadal in 5, Djokovic in 3: @ljkingy
Nadal in 5, Djokovic in 4: @_drivevolley, @anna_tennisfan, @VasekPospisil, @snoodtastic, @fast_tennis
Nadal in 5, Djokovic in 5:
Nadal in 3, Murray in 3:
Nadal in 3, Murray in 4: @tennissmash
Nadal in 3, Murray in 5: @RafaelNadalFC
Nadal in 4, Murray in 3:
Nadal in 4, Murray in 4:
Nadal in 4, Murray in 5:
Nadal in 5, Murray in 3:
Nadal in 5, Murray in 4: @mzemek, @emmaphickey, @nidssserz
Nadal in 5, Murray in 5:

Poor Ryan Sweeting.

How many times have we seen lesser players crack under the mental pressure of pushing a top name to the limit? Ryan Sweeting had unexpectedly gone up two sets to one, on Ferrer. Incredible hitting to the corners, Sweeting was ripping Ferrer’s short playing, moving forward and dictating play. Impressive stuff from the American who had never made it past the second round in a slam.

Ferrer wasn’t much interested in being pushed around in the fourth, however. A little bit deeper was all he needed to keep Sweeting from getting on top of the ball and made rushing the net more difficult to set up, and more dangerous to attempt. Heading into the fifth, the match would only go one way.

Serving at 4-4, things were tense for Sweeting. A fantastic backhand down the line winner from Ferrer followed by an excellent return that caught Sweeting by surprise and suddenly he was down triple break point. A double fault and a horrendous return game and the match was over in the blink of an eye.

For Ferrer it’s an escape that puts him in his proper place; one of the greatest in the game today. While many lower ranked players often collapse under the mental pressure of facing a big name, Ferrer takes this and forces you to physically collapse. The level of his game in the fifth set was but a sliver away from his form in the first set and he dominated on serve to keep the pressure on Sweeting. After winning the fourth set, the outcome of the match was never in doubt and rightfully so. The man is a machine.

Other Notes:

- Tough start to the year for Fish who was visibly frustrate at the Hopman Cup in Perth weeks ago and didn’t fair much better versus Falla. Bad timing, slopppy footwork and all around low confidence, this is the biggest upset for the men so far. The American hard court swing should give him the boost he needs to jump start his year.

- A tough injury to Andy Roddick leaves him out for a few weeks. The real pain is that it knocked him out versus his long time rival Hewitt and denied the chance for a rematch of what was a fantastic 2011 Memphis final versus Raonic.

- Speaking of which, you have to like the Canadian right now. When he’s serving well, he’s darn near impossible to return and break. If he wins that, Djokovic is next. That would be a fantastic match to gauge exactly where both players are right now heading forward.

- Lastly: This has been an incredibly slow first four days as far as the women go. That’s fantastic news. A lack of upsets means that the upcoming match-ups, starting as early as today, will be fantastic and continue to be fantastic regardless of who wins. What a way to kick off 2012 this will be for the WTA. I can’t wait.

It certainly feels like a lifetime has passed since I wrote this.

It’s been a long couple of years for Sorana Cirstea. Things seemed very much on the up in 2009. She made the Roland Garros quarters and Los Angeles semis, as well as the third round in Wimbledon and the US Open. The transition from junior to serious pro seemed complete at the ripe age of 19.

Despite her positive outlook, it’s been a tough couple of years. Sorana has lost much of the “complete player” look she once had, and in a very similar fashion to Ivanovic, has looked more like a player with a big forehand and sporadic confidence.

Tennis is a funny sport though, and so often it’s in the head. At the end of the year last year, Sorana yanked out a $50k ITF title in France after saving a match point all the way in her first round. A solid showing in Auckland against Pennetta despite the first round loss, and then a quarterfinal loss in Hobart to Kerber after blowing two match points.

Expectations for Melbourne? Please. I’ll paraphrase, but at the beginning of her match versus Stosur, I texted my friend saying that I was about to watch Sorana be destroyed in front of a packed house.

Then things started happening. Impressive things. Powerful things. Dominating things. First, the footwork. It’s always been a bit clunky. Last year she made a push to become more fit, and looked almost unhealthily skinny. It was sad to see. However, there seems to be a good balance and it showed in her movement.

The forehand has always been big and been a strength. However, to my eye, much of the loopiness that made it wild was gone. This looked mainly in her wrist preparation which is much more consistent. However, the footwork allowed her to get to balls with plenty of time and make the entire motion consistently over the course of the match.

The serve was impressive as well. 65% is a very, very good sign for her. The fact that she was serving, on average, 10km/h faster than Stosur on first serves at 165km/h doesn’t hurt either.

Mostly importantly, however, was her ability to push Stosur around and take advantage of short balls early in points. Stosur traditionally struggles against some uber-flat hitters and that isn’t by accident. Sorana ate up Stosur’s slices which normally neutralize opponents. She was ready for them too, and wasn’t afraid to bend her knees and let it rip. The forehand down the line (including an amazing running passing shot late in the second set) was particularly impressive.

Lastly, the net. First off, I would like to note that many people noted Cirstea’s success at the net (14/16) and drew comparisons to Kirilenko’s net rushing versus Stosur in New York. This is both true and false. The true part is that both were very effective at the net, and playing the net was often a wise decision. The difference from the Kirilenko match, however, is that it was very much on the forefront of Kirilenko’s mind, particularly while serving. Many of Cirstea’s points at the net were a result of getting on top in baseline rallies and having the guts to finish them off. This largely comes about by the nature of Sam’s short slices, as well as a few Stosur drop shots. Just because a player has a decent amount of net approaches and is largely successful does not necessarily mean that they were net rushing, and in fact, can be quite the opposite.

Overall, you have to feel terrible for Stosur. Full credit needs to be given to Cirstea who may have played the match of her life last night and came in for a fight. But it is also fair to say that Stosur did not play her best tennis and really did not start to show shades of the US Open champion that she is until 1-1 in the second set. However, Stosur is a notoriously slow starter of the season and tends not to find a ton of success in Australia. This is far from a crushing blow to her confidence and potential success this season.

Next up for Sorana Banana is Urszula Radwanska and the chance to make a grand slam third round for the first time since 2009.

(Side note: for those curious of the Twitter hashtag I throw around in good fun, #SoranaCirsteaprayercircleofone. Clearly, I’m a fan of Sorana. I made a trip up to Montreal in 2010 to see the ladies play, and Sorana had made it to the final round of qualifying, up against fellow Romanian Monica Niculescu. Following nothing but the live scores with great intent. Clearly I was the only one caring let alone freaking out and tweeting about it, so I used the hashtag #soranacirsteaprayercircleofone, making a joke on the sometimes used #[player name here]prayercircle joke sometimes used for fans who have a player locked in a tight match. And so the hashtag lives. Oh, and she lost, by the way. Go figure.

Official Site: Here
Official Draw: Here
Women’s Draw Preview: Here
Top Seeds: Djokovic, Nadal, Federer, Murray, Ferrer, Tsonga, Berdych, Fish

Top Half, First Quarter

While Djokovic dominated the season last year, things are a bit different entering 2011. Despite being better than Nadal for the first half of the year, it was difficult to call a favourite heading into the US Open. This time, Djokovic is the clear favourite. This time, he’s not only the number 1 in the world, he has to defend his slam title, and the only one he’s won twice.

The good news for him is that his draw is absolutely fantastic. Perhaps the only major threat could come in the fourth round versus Raonic or Roddick. He’s likely to get Ferrer in the quarterfinal, which is the perfect fit for him considering the 5-8 seeds. Ferrer needs to run and grind down his opponents, something he won’t be able to do against a well rested and confident Novak.

Predicted Quarterfinal: Djokovic vs. Ferrer

Top Half, Second Quarter

This quarter has perhaps the most intriguing quarterfinal match-up of Murray/Tsonga. Tsonga has finally gotten himself healthy and is playing an incredibly aggressive and athletic brand of tennis that can really challenge the top 4. However, Murray does well with overpowering players and is perfectly happy to redirect the pace back at his opponents and come up with the necessary angles.

There are some tricky early tests for Murray, including Harrison and anyone out of Troicki, Llodra or Gulbis. Otherwise, a straight forward road for these two to clash in the quarters.

Predicted Quarterfinal: Murray vs. Tsonga

Bottom Half, First Quarter

This quarter comes with the most questions. A Fish/Federer quarterfinal is less than guaranteed with players like Melzer, Verdasco, Tomic and most importantly del Potro looming.

Perhaps the only two large threats to Fed are Dolgopolov, who showed flashes of brilliance last year, and Melzer, seeded at the 31 spot due to injury. One of these may test Fed, but pencil him in for the quarters one more time.

The top half of the quarter is a bit more tricky with Delpo opposite Fish. Del Potro steadily improved last year after his return and is not back to top form… or is he? Some time off, some training and a fresh outlook can do wonders. Delpo is no longer the comeback, feel good story and will likely feel like he’s out to prove himself and make that jump back into the top 10 and the ATP’s elite. His underrated defense and return of serve in a five set match gives him the edge in my book.

Predicted Quarterfinal: del Potro vs. Federer

Bottom Half, Second Quarter

Lastly we come to the quarter of Mr. Number 2, Rafael Nadal. While his results in Abu Dhabi and Doha may imply that Rafa is not ready to reclaim tennis’ top spot or the Australian title, anyone who saw him play can tell you that the flame is burning. And it’s burnin’ high.

Were there brain farts? Yes. Were there adjustments, point construction, and improvement? Absolutely. In particular, Rafa’s backhand impressed as did his movement around the court. There was just that little edge that we come to expect from Rafa. He looks much more relaxed off the court, and most importantly, he knows he needs to be better. And so the hunted becomes the hunter.

On the other side of the coin is what could be a tricky quarter for Berdych. His form right now is anyone’s guess, but he’ll have the oppurtunity to work his way into the tournament. That being said, he has been known to stumble, and a possible showdown versus a hot Almagro and a semi-hometown favourite Baghdatis may be a tough ask.

Predicted Quarterfinal: Almagro vs. Nadal
Predicted Semifinals: Djokovic vs. Murray, Federer vs. Nadal
Predicted Final: Djokovic vs. Nadal
Predicted Champion: Novak Djokovic

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Wozniacki, Kvitova, Azarenka, Sharapova, Li, Radwanska, Stosur, Zvonareva

Top Half, First Quarter

While this quarter is a potential Wozniacki/Li match-up, Clisters roams in what is otherwise a very attractive looking quarter for the big names. Amazingly, Kim falls on Nails’ side, meaning they could meet in the fourth round in a rematch of last years final. That is the closest they could have been, due to seeding. As of right now, the edge has to go to Nails who has looked fantastic in Sydney. Kim is fighting injuries and her inconsistency may do her in, despite her game matching up well. Regardless, if that does happen, it will be mandatory evening (or middle of the night) viewing.

A quarterfinal finish, at the least, is a must for Caro. She has an incredibly favourable draw and should cruise to the fourth round. There she will likely meet Jankovic or Safarova and should move through.

Predicted Quarterfinal: Wozniacki vs. Li

Top Half, Second Quarter

If there’s a quarter serving up a ton of fantastic first and second round matches, this has to be it. Wickmayer/Voskoboeva, Rezai/Peng, Azarenka/Watson and numerous other match-ups happening the rounds to follow. The Sydney final will give us a preview of the potential quarterfinal battle, Azarenka/Radwanska, which is a difficult match to call.

Surely Azarenka has to be the massive favourite for this quarter. A resurgent Pennetta may prove tricky in the fourth round, but should be beatable with where Azarenka’s game is right now. Despite what should be some fantastic matches…

Predicted Quarterfinal: Azarenka vs. Radwanska

Bottom Half, First Quarter

This quarter is incredibly packed and even more difficult to predict. The fourth rounds would be Serena/Zvonareva and Lisicki/Sharapova. Other big names lurk around the corner with Kanepi (3r Zvonareva), Kuznetsova (3r Lisicki) and Cibulkova and Marino who could play in the second round for the chance to play Serena.

At the same time, it’s difficult to know how players like Zvonareva (who bounced early in Sydney and Lisicki and Serena (injuries) are feeling right now. In other words, though it might seem difficult for some of the lower ranked players to squeeze through, the opportunity may be there.

Due to Serena winning this tournament the last time she was here combined with her fitness level, it is difficult to rule out her chances in this quarter.

Predicted Quarterfinal: Williams vs. Lisicki

Bottom Half, Second Quarter

This quarter features what should be Kvitova/Stosur, but a match that is highly unlikely, in my opinion. Stosur struggles at home and typically early in the season. Kvitova has asthma problems and the brutal Aussie heat does her no favours (thanks Ana!).

With that in mind, this may be the weakest overall quarter of the draw which could help see the big names through. Look for Bartoli, in Stosur’s section, to get on a roll and make some noise.

Predicted Quarterfinal: Bartoli vs. Kvitova

Predicted Semifinals: Wozniacki vs. Azarenka, Williams vs. Bartoli
Predicted Final: Azarenka vs. Williams
Predicted Champion: Serena Williams

Boring? Maybe. But this is a tournament that Serena loves and after missing out her chance to defend it?… Scary times, people.

Combined – Sydney (Premier and 250)

Official Site: Here
Draws: Men & Women
Top Men Seeds: Delpo, Isner, Gasquet, Feli Lopez
Top Women Seeds: Woz, Kvits, Azarenka, Nails

The beginning of the year has been a strange time for the past few years. Typically Fed and Rafa peace out to Doha for the first week of the season, which seemingly takes place in an alternate universe. Djokovic doesn’t even bother. The rest of the events scrounge together what recognizable names they can find and do what they can. Then everyone comes together for the big show.

For the ladies, nearly everyone gets their cuts in somewhere, and almost everyone chooses to play Sydney. This year, nearly every top lady entered, pushing someone seemingly automatically in to a big tournament, Maria Kirilenko, into the qualifying draw (which she was eventually bounced out of).

While the men’s draw largely lacks any dark horses or big names overall, it is home to del Potro as it’s top seed. It is tough to know exactly what we’ll get from the big man this year. His return to the tour was not the Delpo we saw in 2009, and as expected. However, this may be the year that the big man gets back into his groove and there is no reason that that shouldn’t happen. Every tennis fan should scout out his form heading to Melbourne.

The ladies’ field is absolutely packed and has already featured a ton of big name matches that you would expect to see in the second week of a slam. And therein lies the rub. It may be tricky to know exactly how some of these players are feeling (I’m looking at you, Zvonareva) heading into the Melbourne. A quick loss here does not mean that they won’t find a way to work themselves into the Open and find success. Regardless, a must watch tournament with fantastic match-ups each and every day, guaranteed.

Women – Hobart (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Wicky, AMG, Niculescu, Kerber

Hobart does not have a terrible draw considering Sydney is happening at the same time. Some names that could make some noise in Melbourne (Wicky, Peer, Pironkova… Cirstea…) and a pretty even draw overall. On a personal note, sometimes watching these smaller, laid back tournaments can be incredibly relaxing and can really give off the laid-back atmosphere of outer courts at other tournaments. Nerds only!

Men – Auckland (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Ferrer, Almagro, Verdasco, Chela

It’s all about the Spaniards in Auckland, as tennis’ Energizer Bunny gets to work on his season. Ferrer had what he called his greatest season of his career last year as he became a mental and physical force that seemed to defy his age and time spent on court. He has to be the overwhelming favourite to take this tournament, and has to be a name to watch out for in anyone’s part of the draw in Melbourne. Special shout out to Verdasco, who looks incredibly fit and played well in the Hopman Cup. Surprise Melbourne run to come?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, my Christmas break was much more busy than I expected to be. I planned on doing 12 different posts to wrap up the 2011s of the top 6 men and women. Turns out that wasn’t going to happen. However, I did come up with a post for Tsonga, and I figure it might not be a bad time to post it considering his current form, and recent Doha championship. This will be the (second and) last one. Regular blog activity, however, returns now!

Looking back on Jo’s year, it’s pretty incredible that the Frenchman managed to finish in the top 10 let alone number 6. Despite making the Rotterdam final, it was a tough start of the year for Jo who fell in the third round of the Australian Open. He had an absolutely dismal clay swing where he played five tournaments before Roland Garros and only mustered up 6 victories. He wouldn’t escape the third round of the French either, falling to Stan the Man.

But like just about all of our beloved French players, it’s all in the head with this one. A defeat of Nadal at Queen’s and run to the final (where he lost to Murray) gave him the confidence he desperately needed. Wimbledon was the perfect stage (and surface) for Tsonga to make a run.

After defeating Ferrer in the fourth round, the mighty Federer stood in Jo’s way. It was a typical, old school “frozen in the sights of the master” by Jo over the first two sets, where he seemingly forgot which parts of his game bring him success. Two sets to The Fed, and it was over.

That’s what we figured. Everyone except Tsonga, apparently. Against Federer, and Wimbledon’s greatest champion, it was something none of us have ever seen and will likely never see again. Sure, guys have loosened up and tried to make great comebacks against greats other than just Federer. However, the issues of concentration, fitness and overall skill tend to undo the underdog and get the favourite into the next round. Unfortunately for Fed, it was a different animal.
Jo didn’t just throw caution into the wind, he loaded it into a rocket launcher and fired it back to his house in France. The man was an absolute beast. To start, the serve. Enormous. To boot, he looked to not only pulverize every ball hit his way, but to push it to the sides or the corners. And to kick off the ultimate grass court game, he came to the net when necessary and used his athleticism to finish points off. Honestly, I don’t think anyone on tour would have beaten Jo in those three sets. It was the ultimate display of power, movement, and volleying.

Next up was the man of the hour, Novak Djokovic. With hindsight, in my opinoin, this was probably going to be Djokovic’s toughest match. Die hard Rafa fans will disagree, but Novak needed two tight tiebreakers (9-7 and 11-9) to squeeze out of this one. If Jo had just a little bit more of the spark that he had versus Fed and a little bit more luck, it easily could have gone the other way.
The rest of Jo’s hard court season saw a steady string of results, including beating Federer again en route to the Montreal semis, the quarters in New York, the Metz title and the Paris final, among some other good results. Lastly, he beat Nadal and pushed his way into the World Tour Finals before losing to Federer.

For me, Jo continues to be a player to watch, and a guy you never want to see in your section of the draw. It takes an incredible amount of skill to win a grand slam these days. We often talk about having all of the “tools”, and Jo’s tool box runneth over. He’s one of my favourite players to watch. Powerful serve, a solid (and powerful when necessary) forehand combined with excellent movement and athleticism that can help him make that show stopping shot or get to that tricky ball.

No, for Jo it’s both in the head and the body. Injuries seem to plague him, and for a guy who needs confidence and a steady string of results to get his feet under him, constantly being banged up and missing matches does not help the brain. If Jo can stay healthy and get some solid results under his belt, me might just be able to stir up some results at Wimbledon and into the second half of 2012.

In a different approach from what I normally take, I’ll count down the top 12 tennis players in the world (6 women, 6 men) for the 12 Days of Christmas. I’ll also bring back my “Buy, Sell” segment as I look ahead to 2012.

It doesn’t seem too long ago that I sat down on a blustery August morning to watch Superhero Slam absolutely dismantle Virginie Razzano. Yes, it should have been a pretty winnable match for Sam. However, the manner in which she did it left my jaw around court level. As Razanno realized she wasn’t going to win from the baseline, she adapted and tried to get to net more. Good move. Unfortunately for her, it didn’t matter. Sam fired big serves, down the line passing shots, wicked spinning lobs, you name it. On Sam’s serve, she started coming to the net, slicing and pounding to set it up and finishing it off with excellent volleys. It eventually led to one of the most comical things I’ve ever seen on a tennis court in Razzano’s frustration, and it was tough to blame her.

Consistency and confident have always been the two most difficult things for the Aussie, but she managed to pull them together this year at the US Open, and did it ever pay off. While this past year’s US Open will likely be remembered in the minds of most for Stosur’s first slam victory and Serena’s ridiculous and offside comments (again), it will always be that tiebreak that will stand out for me. It was classic US Open, for better or worse. One amazing match pushed to an outer court because of rain that brought massive drama and more atmosphere than your kid’s soccer final. It was also one of those excellent sports moments that was fantastic to see unfold in real time over Twitter as well.

Amazingly, before Rome Stosur had only made one semifinal (Stuttgart) and one quarterfinal (Dubai) and even lost to one Dinara Safina in Indian Wells. The results started to come, however, largely the final in Toronto, where she never looked likely to lose until teeing off against a rejuvenated Serena.

Then of course the US Open run, where she survived back to back marathons against Petrova and Kirilenko, dismantled Zvonareva and eventually calmly rose to the occasion against a scatterbrained Serena.

All in all, Sam has very few points to defend for the first chunk of the year, and some successful results could see her ranking stock rise incredibly quickly. When she’s on, she’s really on, and Sam Stosur is undoubtedly one to watch in 2012.

After a foot injury turned to a life threatening disease, Serena Williams missed her chance to return to the biggest stage of tennis and right the wrong that was her infamous shouting tirade on lineswoman Shino. She missed the chance to defend her Australian Open title, and missed Roland Garros too. Finally, she returned to Wimbledon in a wave of emotion that moved tennis fans everywhere. She was so happy to be there.

Truth be told, no one expected her to win that tournament, and she didn’t. That was fine. It was the calm before the storm, the trumpeting of the return of the “real” number one. The Queen was back, baby.

The stage was set all too perfectly. After casting out the number 1 Caroline Wozniacki like a heretic from the church of tennis nerddom, she was in the final. This wasn’t any final, however. Pushed back to Sunday because of the rain, it would take place on the 10th anniversary of September 11th in New York, happening at the same time as the triumphant return of the NFL’s first Sunday. It was all so American. All too perfect.

Her opponent would be Australian Samantha Stosur who she had dismantled in the Toronto final just weeks earlier, and had dismantled on many occasions before.

It wasn’t such smooth sailing, however. In many fans thirst for blood in the semifinal, they failed to see the chinks in the armour of Serena. She looked impatient at times, and missed easy shots. Her defense backed her up against an opponent seemingly incapable of hitting winners, and she was fine.

Stosur is not Wozniacki, however. She made her pay, keeping her off balance with her trademark kick serve, and punished the short balls down the line on the forehand wing when the opportunities presented themselves. She took the first set.

We as tennis fans didn’t jump to conclusions. It’s why they play the games, but it’s also why they play three sets. Serena would make errors, keep her calm with her trademark stretched left arm, palm-to-the-court “I’m not going to freak out” look. She would spank a couple winners, get fired up, gain her focus and composure, and her opponent would crumble under the weight of it all. It would be one way traffic from there, and the prophecy would be fulfilled.

If football is a game of inches, tennis is a game of milimetres. It’s also a game of milliseconds. After hitting that fateful forehand at the start of the second set, she yelled out a “come on!” before Sam got to the ball and lay a racquet to it. The point was rightly awarded to Stosur. It was one way traffic indeed, but the cars were on the wrong side of the road.

“You’re out of control. You’re totally out of control. You’re a hater, and you’re unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? And I never complain. Wow. What a loser.” Just some of the deep insights that came out during the changeover.

Serena, rather sarcastically if you ask me, reflected after the match that she would have to check the rule book and thought obstruction was more like the “hat rule”, in that if you lose your hat, the point is called a let and you replay it. She was wrong.

Ironically, the tour has come under much scrutiny with the absence of Serena, Maria, Kim, and now permanently Justine in that many lower ranked players are able to make it deep into tournaments and in fact win them as the top seeds crumble and fall away. Sadly, despite Serena doing the same thing, Stosur rose to the occasion and took it, and not just in this match.

Her match versus Petrova was incredible (see my post below). The longest match in US Open history for the women, she dropped the second set, barely. But like what many of the top men do, frankly, they keep faith in that they were the better player on the court, stick to the game plan of staying aggressive and looking for openings, and wait it out on their way to victory, however slim it may be.

It was the same story in the next round as her and Kirilenko ground out one of the longest tiebreaks ever. While it would be lovely to say that winning it was a turning point for Stosur, that was not to be as Kirilenko took it 17-15. That was all fine and dandy for Stosur. She kept working, kept attacking, and smothered the exhausted Kirilenko and the train kept rolling.

When we look back at this tournament, it will be highlighted by the final, the return of Serena, and her inevitable frustration and fall. Really, it should be highlighted by those two fantastic, epic, historical matches that took place late at night on Louis Armstrong and the Grandstand respectfully. While the worlds’ eyes were elsewhere, a champion was forging the ground work for an historic run to the finish line.

It just wouldn’t be a Labour Day weekend without some drama after the sun goes down and the lights come on.

What was originally scheduled as the third match on Arthur Ashe was pushed all the way to a late start on the Grandstand as to avoid delaying the night session, and the fans were treated to some tennis dessert as Samantha Stosur took on Maria Kirilenko.

The first set was all Stosur from the beginning, dominating from the baseline off the forehand wing and troubling Kiri with her big kick serve. Kiri scratched out a hold and broke Sam serving for the set, but was then broken herself, and the set was over in a blink, 6-2.

From then on, MaKiri decided it was do our die, and it was a beautiful thing to see. Instead of trying to out hit Sam from the baseline, she took any and every opportunity she could to get to the net. This often meant taking short balls inside out on the forehand and pushing Sam to her weaker backhand side. It was textbook net rushing harkening back to the often used strategy of 20 years ago and more.

The greatest part, however, was that it was working. A wonderful doubles player in her own right, it didn’t matter if it was forehand, backhand, or right at her, Kiri had all the answers at the net.

After a grind of a set, it was off to a tiebreak, one that is now already partly legendary. Set points and match points saved abound, it was full of insane winners, long rallies, and missed opportunities. 32 points, and 17-15 to Kiri.

Jacked up on adrenaline, she came flying out of the gate in the third to hold at love and take a couple points off Sam’s serve. Two nights ago, Sam played the longest women’s match in US Open history against Petrova, where she served for the match in the second and blew the tiebreak. She kept calm on serve in the third and found a way to secure the only break of the final set at 5-6 to take the decider.

Not unlike two nights ago, Sam kept her cool. Something has to be said about both her mental strength and her fitness. It was pretty clear that Kiri’s adrenaline and level of play would not hold up all set, and like a vulture swooping in to claim its prey, Sam broke early and cruised to take the match as if the second set had never happened.

Make no doubt about it, Sam is playing incredibly well right now. The errors are there, and always will be when you play the way she does. The important thing is that she’s sticking to her game plan (kick serves, finding a way to the forehand, pushing out wide and staying patient) even when things get tough, but not playing stubborn enough to not make small adjustments (such as her approach to passing shots against Kiri, specifically the third set). Her past two matches have been insanely close, but her opponents have been on their game and they’ve deserved to be.

After a great run in Toronto, and now overcoming two difficult three set matches, Sam’s confidence has to be sky high. Up against Zvonareva in the quarters and then possibly the winner of Pennetta/Kerber, she might just be the favourite to make the final.